Nicole Funari

REIT balance sheets were strong heading into the pandemic with easy access to cash and lines of credit, and operating performance proved to be resilient.

While REITs have underperformed the broader stock market so far in 2020, it is long-term returns that matter.  REITs have been a favorable choice when looking at long-term returns.

Roughly 44% of American households are invested in REIT stocks.

REITs outperformed most other GICs sectors with only 5.8% of the REIT market cap downgraded. REITs were the third best performing GICS sector by this measure.

One of the keys to finding opportunities in the current real estate landscape is by differentiating between transitory and permanent changes in consumer behavior and the use of real estate.

The most recent rent survey results show that on average for REITs, the share of typical rent collected in May was largely unchanged from April.

Using the public data along with the privately collected Nareit data, this research note presents a fuller picture of the industry’s rent collection for April.

Nareit survey benchmarks response across 37 member REITs.

Nareit’s annual update of REIT property counts and estimated gross asset values by state and property sector is now available on the revamped REITs Across America website.

Nareit estimates 86.6 American adults, or 44% of American households, own REIT stocks directly or indirectly through mutual funds, ETFs or target date funds.

From 2016 to 2018, the jobs equivalent contribution from REITs is up an estimated 19.0%.